Located in central Scotland, Perth is working to transform 20 hectares of its surrounding area into a national eco innovation business park. With the city rapidly growing – estimated to have increased by almost a quarter within the next two decades – the aim of Perth West is to provide an opportunity for eco-friendly, sustainable city expansion.

Yesterday, Perth & Kinross Council and the John Dewar Lamberkin Trust, the driving force behind the Perth West development, moved forward in their plans to work together and drive the eco innovation park. A signing of agreement confirmed a structured approach to discussions, co-ordination and joint promotion to attract further investment, research and employment opportunities to the project and city.

Perth West will focus on developing an extensive range of projects including infrastructure, distribution, commercial and residential property, an academic centre, and a district heat & power system. The Innovation Highway: an integrated energy, data and road corridor enabling access to low-carbon, smart energy and mobility infrastructure will be a key element in ensuring Perth West fulfils its eco-friendly, innovative stance.

(Councillor Murray Lyle and Alexander Dewar met yesterday for the signing of the MOU)

The development looks to be a great investment for local areas. In a previous discussion surrounding the Perth West project, Councillor Murray Lyle, leader of Perth and Kinross Council explained:

Investment in Perth West will create fantastic opportunities for growth to improve jobs, quality of life, and the local economy. This is a great time to invest in Perth.

As well as the great opportunities that will be brought by the development financially, fulfilling plans to create clean and affordable de-carbonised energy will position Perth as a leading European smart, green city - a huge achievement for Scotland in its ambitions to improve eco status.

Alexander Dewar, Trustee of the John Dewar Lamberkin Trust said: "Our ambition for Perth West is to act as a catalyst for Perth’s transition to a low-carbon, high-skilled economy". He believes that through their collaboration with Perth and Kinross, and other bodies such as Tactran, they will succeed in achieving an “innovative and inclusive transformation of the city, for the benefit of Perth and the wider region”.

The development has received a great level of support thus far, with more than £140million of planned public investment in infrastructure. Private Investors include world-renowned companies such as Porsche, Jaguar, Land Rover and UK property developer, Bellway Homes. Councillor Murray Lyle explained his interest in working alongside the project:

Signing a MOU with the John Dewar Lamberkin Trust is part of our work in developing our new Perth and Kinross Offer. We are willing to engage positively with local landowners and developers to promote strategic sites and investment propositions

With ongoing support from private and public sector bodies, there is no doubt that Perth West is set to be a ground-breaking project for Perthshire and central Scotland. With its forward-thinking, smart and eco-friendly stance, it is a great example of Scotland’s ability to create innovative and sustainable growth opportunities for the future.